Republicans Pull Their Obamacare Replacement From Consideration

President Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan have decided not to continue considering the American Health Care Act as a replacement for Obamacare, the Washington Post reports.

Earlier in the day, Ryan knew he didn’t have enough “yes” votes to pass the AHCA, as the New York Times reported, and Republican lawmakers had hoped to put off a vote that they knew — if it didn’t pass — would break their campaign promises to repeal Obamacare. But President Donald Trump insisted that the House of Representatives decide about the American Health Care Act today, a move that echoed the tough deal-making strategy he espoused as a businessman.

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What will happen now that the AHCA is off the table? Before the vote, Trump’s budget director, Mick Mulvaney, told Republicans this would be an all-or-nothing vote; Trump wasn’t interested in giving another plan a shot. But some thought he was bluffing. Representative Dan Donovan, a Republican for New York who voted against the AHCA and who has known Trump for decades, told the Washington Post as much.

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